World Cup double header a ‘Big Hit’ in London and St Albans

Rugby League World Cup 2013 organisers are celebrating the biggest group sale for a single event so far, after 1,500 tickets for The Big Hit doubleheader of semi-finals were snapped up by junior and adult Rugby League players and their families in London and St Albans.

Players from junior to open-age level at a host of clubs across the area moved quickly to buy the tickets, following the work of RFL Business Development Manager Ray Tennant, St Albans Centurions Chairman Gary Tetlow and Chairman of London Youth, Junior and Primary Rugby League Martin Coyd. Martin Coyd said: “To sell 1,000 tickets in one batch in London is a fantastic effort and really speaks volumes about the appetite there is for this tournament in the capital. We’ve got a section of seats in the West Stand at Wembley and we’re going to call it ‘our day’, because we see it as our city and our stadium.

“It’ll be truly fantastic for everybody involved and every time the Rugby League World Cup comes around it provides an excellent opportunity for us to grow our Rugby League family and generate new interest in this fantastic sport. That family is very strong down here and is reaching further all the time and now includes the counties surrounding London. These ticket sales are a great example of all the work going on down here, and what a huge draw Rugby League World Cup 2013 is.”

1,000 of the tickets were sold last week in London and surrounding areas and a further 500 were taken in St Albans.

RLWC2013 organisers are confident that The Big Hit at Wembley on November 23 will be an occasion to rival the Opening Ceremony and the Final. Coyd said: “I think there’ll be a party atmosphere in the stadium, primarily created by those who love Rugby League, but there’ll also be plenty of new supporters in the ground too, which is brilliant. A lot of our junior members are bringing along parents, grandparents and extended family members, and that’s massive for Rugby League World Cup 2013. We’re hoping that England will be there at the semi-finals, and if they can win the tournament then I think the impact it could have will be magnified.”

Great news but also a challenge for Northerners-you are not going to let the South lead the way in showing their appreciation and enthusiasm for the greatest game are you?!! Let's have whole sections of the quarter final games sold out as well.